(Image source from: Indy100)

An Indian man in Arizona has breathed his last while being held in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This is the second death that ICE has witnessed in a month.

The latest death occurred at the La Paz County Jail in Parker, a rural town in far western Arizona near the California border.

ICE officials said Simratpal Singh, 21, was found unresponsive and not breathing at the La Paz County Jail on May 3, while he awaited transfer to an ICE facility.

Singh was transferred to ICE custody earlier that day after posting bond on charges of assault and sexual assault, ICE officials said.

Local paramedics responded and Singh was transported by ambulance to the La Paz Regional Hospital. He was then airlifted to Abrazo West Campus Hospital in Goodyear. He was pronounced dead at 1:58 a.m. on May 3, ICE officials said.

A pending autopsy will determine the official cause of death, ICE officials said.

The Department Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General and the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility were notified of the death, along with state health and local law enforcement agencies.

ICE also notified Indian consular officials of Singh's death.

The La Paz County Sheriff's Office has asked the neighboring Mohave County Sheriff Department to conduct an outside investigation, said Anita Mortensen, a spokeswoman at the MCSD.

Singh's death comes four weeks after a Mexican national died on April 3 while in ICE custody at the Florence Service Processing Center, an ICE-run detention facility about 60 miles south of Phoenix.

By Sowmya Sangam